Apparatus for transferring a fuel rod for testing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9412475-B2
Application number	US-201414149879-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 8, 2014
Priority date	Jan 8, 2013
Publication date	Aug 9, 2016
Grant date	Aug 9, 2016

Abstract

Disclosed is a fuel rod testing apparatus for a nuclear fuel assembly. The fuel rod testing apparatus includes a helium leakage testing chamber having a gate so that a fuel rod is horizontally loaded/unloaded and testing whether or not helium leaks from the fuel rod, a fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit that has first and second transfer sections located in front of the gate and horizontally installed apart from each other in order to guide the fuel rod loaded into or unloaded from the helium leakage testing chamber, and that vertically drives the first and second transfer sections, and a main frame that has a upper transfer section disposed in parallel in a lengthwise direction of the fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit and having an inclined face and a lower transfer section installed at a lower portion of the upper transfer section and having an inclined face.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for transferring a fuel rod for testing, comprising:
a testing chamber including
a gate disposed at one side of the testing chamber so that the fuel rod is horizontally loaded/unloaded through the gate, and
a conveyer installed inside the testing chamber;

fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit disposed side by side with the testing chamber and including
a first transfer section installed in a top portion of the fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit and configured to load the fuel rod into the testing chamber in a lengthwise direction,
a second transfer section installed under the first transfer section and configured to unload the fuel rod from the testing chamber in the lengthwise direction,
a guide bracket supporting the first and second transfer sections wherein an upper portion of the guide bracket is fixed to a side of each of the first and second transfer sections, and
a drive unit disposed in a lower side of the fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit and coupled to a lower portion of the guide bracket, the drive unit configured to vertically drive the first and second transfer sections such that when the drive unit drives the first and second transfer sections downward, the first transfer section is placed at a height of the gate, and when the drive unit drives the first and second transfer sections upward, the second transfer section is placed at the height of the gate; and

a main frame disposed in a lateral side of the fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit and including
an upper transfer section disposed in a top portion of the main frame and configured to supply the fuel rod to the first transfer section, the upper transfer section having a first inclined face toward the fuel rod upward/downward transfer unit and a lower edge of the first inclined face adjacent to the first transfer section,

a lower transfer section installed under the upper transfer section and configured to discharge the fuel rod from the second transfer section, the lower transfer section having a second inclined face in an opposite direction of the first inclined face of the upper transfer section and an upper edge of the second inclined face adjacent to the second transfer section, and
a beam structure disposed in a lower portion of the main frame comprising a plurality of beams to support the upper transfer section and the lower transfer section.

2. The apparatus set forth in claim 1 , wherein the first and second transfer sections each include at least one drive roller and a plurality of idle rollers.

3. The apparatus set forth in claim 1 , further comprising
a testing table installed adjacent to the lower transfer section and configured to receive the fuel rod discharged from the second transfer section via the lower transfer section.

4. The apparatus set forth in claim 1 , wherein the upper transfer section further includes a retractable stopper member configured to protrude on the first inclined face to stop the fuel rod.

5. The apparatus set forth in claim 4 , wherein the retractable stopper member includes
a lever having a predetermined length and pivotally installed on the upper transfer section by a first hinge,
a first stopper and a second stopper formed to protrude upward from opposite ends of the lever, and
a rotary driver rotating the lever.

6. The apparatus set forth in claim 5 , wherein the rotary driver is coupled with the lever by a second hinge.

Assignees

• Kepco Nuclear Fuel Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lee Ju Young
• Hwang Chang Hwan
• Chang Hung Soon
• Guk Soon Ki
• Na Tae Hyung
• Lee Ui Jea

Classifications

• G21C17/07

  Leak testing · CPC title

• G21C17/002 Primary

  Detection of leaks (by testing the coolant or the moderator G21C17/04) · CPC title

• G21C17/06 Primary

  Devices or arrangements for monitoring or testing fuel or fuel elements outside the reactor core, e.g. for burn-up, for contamination (G21C17/08, G21C17/10 take precedence; detecting leaking fuel elements during reactor operation G21C17/04) · CPC title

• Y02E30/30

  Nuclear fission reactors · CPC title